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{{Infobox Celebrity| name = Jerry Falwell || image = Jerry Falwell portrait.jpg || caption = || birth_date = || birth_place = Lynchburg, Virginia,United States,[United States [Christianity evangelism|years active = 1971-2007|| salary = || networth = || website = http://www.falwell.com/ || footnotes = |-->

Jerry Lamon Falwell, Sr. (August 11 1933 – May 15, 2007) was an United States Fundamentalist Christianity pastor and televangelism. He was the founding pastor of the Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, Virginia. He founded Liberty University in 1971 and co-founded the Moral Majority in 1979.

Falwell led services at Thomas Road Baptist Church, a megachurch in Lynchburg, Virginia. He changed affiliations from Baptist Bible Fellowship International to the mainly conservative Southern Baptist Convention, and ended his self-identification with Fundamentalist Christianity in favor of evangelicalism.

Personal life Falwell was born in Lynchburg, Virginia to Helen and Carey Hezekiah Falwell. His father was an entrepreneur and one-time Rum-runner who was not very religious. His grandfather was a staunch atheist. Televangelist, Christian Leader Falwell Dies, by www.NPR.org, retrieved May 15, 2007 Falwell was born with a twin brother, Gene.

Falwell married the former Macel Pate on April 12, 1958, and had two sons (one, Jerry Falwell, Jr., is a lawyer and the other, Jonathan, a pastor) and one daughter (Jeannie, who is a surgery).

Prior to the founding of his church, Falwell attended Lynchburg College in Lynchburg, Virginia, but left during his wiktionary:sophomore year. He then transferred to and graduated from Baptist Bible College (Springfield, Missouri) in Springfield, Missouri in 1956. Jerry Falwell's Official Biography July 1, 2006; Falwell left Lynchburg College, which was Educational accreditation at the time for Baptist Bible College (Springfield, Missouri) in Springfield, Missouri which was then non-accredited. Baptist Bible College became accredited in 2001.http://www.ncahlc.org/index.php?option=com_directory&Action=ShowBasic&instid=2797

Although he sometimes used the title "Doctor," Falwell held no earned doctorate. He held three honorary degrees: an honorary Doctor of Divinity from Tennessee Baptist Seminary Meet Jerry Falwell, an honorary Doctor of Letters from California Graduate School of Theology, and an honorary Doctor of Laws from Central University (Seoul) in Seoul, South Korea.

Associated organizations Thomas Road Baptist Church In 1956, at age 22, Falwell became the founding pastor of the Thomas Road Baptist Church of Lynchburg (TRBC).

Liberty University In 1971, Jerry Falwell founded Liberty University, a Christian liberal arts university in Lynchburg, Virginia.

Moral Majority In 1979, Falwell founded the Moral Majority, one of the largest political lobby groups for evangelical Christians in the United States. The group is credited with delivering two-thirds of the white, evangelical Christian vote to Ronald Reagan during the United States presidential election, 1980.

Social and political views Families Falwell strongly advocated beliefs and practices he felt were taught by the Bible.The Fundamentalist Phenomenon et al, Baker Publishing Group, 1986) He believed in the quintessential patriarchal family in which, ideally, the father is the primary bread-winner and the wife takes care of the home and raises the children until they’re old enough to attend a Christian school. The entire family was expected to play an active role in their local church. Falwell's company "The Moral Majority" was founded on four basic tenets, 1) pro-family, 2) pro-life, 3) pro-defense and 4) pro-Israel.Falwell.com

The church, Falwell asserted, was the cornerstone of a successful family. Not only was it a place for spiritual learning and guidance, but also a gathering place for fellowship and socializing with like-minded individuals. The dialogs started one-on-one after service among parishioners would often build into more focused speeches or organized goals Falwell could then present to a larger audience via his various media outlets.

Civil rights During the appearance on MSNBC, Falwell said he was not troubled by reports that Supreme Court nominee John Roberts had done volunteer legal work for gay rights activists on the case of Romer v. Evans. Falwell told MSNBC's Tucker Carlson that if he were a lawyer, he too would argue for civil rights for gays. "I may not agree with the lifestyle, but that has nothing to do with the civil rights of that... part of our constituency," Falwell said. When Carlson countered that conservatives "are always arguing against 'special rights' for gays," Falwell said that equal access to housing and employment are basic rights, not special rights. "Civil rights for all Americans, black, white, red, yellow, the rich, poor, young, old, gay, straight, et cetera, is not a liberal or conservative value. It's an American value that I would think that we pretty much all agree on."Eartha Jane Melzer, Falwell hints support for some gay rights, The Washington Blade, August 26, 2005.However, this apparent support for the civil rights of gays and lesbians is in sharp contrast to most of the statements Fallwell made throughout his lifetime that were harshly critical of gays and lesbians.

Falwell supported Anita Bryant's 1977 movement to overturn an ordinance in Miami-Dade County, Florida that prohibited discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and a similar movement in California.Peter Applebome, Jerry Falwell, Leading Religious Conservative, Dies at 73, The New York Times, May 15, 2007.

Falwell grew up in a strongly Racial segregation setting and supported racial segregation. In 1965, he gave a sermon at his Thomas Road Baptist Church criticizing Martin Luther King and the Civil rights movement, which he sometimes referred to as the "Civil Wrongs Movement". On his Evangelist program The Old-Time Gospel Hour in the mid 1960s, he regularly featured segregationist politicians like Lester Maddox and George Wallace.http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=522Falwell's views eventually shifted and he opposed segregation in his later years.http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2006/01/09/justice_sunday/index_np.html

He said this about Martin Luther King, Jr.: "I do question the sincerity and non-violent intentions of some civil rights leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., James L. Farmer, Jr., and others, who are known to have left wing associations."

Israel The Anti-Defamation League, and its leader Abraham Foxman, have expressed strong support for Falwell's staunch pro-Israel stand, sometimes referred to as "Christian Zionism," despite repeatedly condemning what they perceive as intolerance towards Muslims in Falwell's public statements.http://www.adl.org/PresRele/DiRaB_41/4168_41.htm

Education Falwell repeatedly denounced certain teachings in public schools and secular education in general, calling them breeding grounds for atheism, secularism, and humanism, which he claimed to be in contradiction with Christian morality. He advocated that the United States change its public education system by implementing a school voucher system which would allow parents to send their children to either public or private schools. Jerry Falwell wrote in America Can Be Saved that "I hope I live to see the day when, as in the early days of our country, we won't have any public schools. The churches will have taken them over again and Christians will be running them."http://atheism.about.com/library/glossary/western/bldef_falwelljerry.htm

Falwell supported President George W. Bush's White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, but had strong reservations concerning where the funding would go and the restrictions placed on churches. "My problem is where it might go under his successors... I would not want to put any of the Jerry Falwell Ministries in a position where we might be subservient to a future Bill Clinton, God forbid... It also concerns me that once the pork barrel is filled, suddenly the Church of Scientology, the Jehovah's Witnesses , the various and many denominations and religious groups — and I don’t say those words in a pejorative way — begin applying for money — and I don’t see how any can be turned down because of their radical and unpopular views. I don’t know where that would take us."http://www.beliefnet.com/story/70/story_7040_1.html

Apartheid In the 1980s Jerry Falwell was critical of sanctions against the apartheid regime of South Africa. He stated that while he was opposed to apartheid, he feared that sanctions would result in a worse situation, with either a more oppressive white minority government or a Soviet-backed revolution. He drew the ire of many when he called Nobel Peace Prize winner and Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu a phony "as far as representing the black people of South Africa."http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,959695,00.html He later apologized for that remark and claimed that he had misspoken. FALWELL DENOUNCES TUTU AS A 'PHONY' He also urged his followers to buy up gold Krugerrands and push U.S. "reinvestment" in South Africa.

Controversies Election fund improprieties In 1987, the Federal Election Commission fined Falwell US $6,000 for illegally transferring US$6.7 million in funds intended for his religious ministry to his political action committees.

The Clinton Chronicles In 1994, Falwell promoted and distributed the straight-to-video documentary The Clinton Chronicles: An Investigation into the Alleged Criminal Activities of Bill Clinton. The video connected Clinton to a theoretical conspiracy involving Vincent Foster, Jim McDougal, Ron Brown (U.S. politician), and an alleged cocaine-smuggling operation. Despite the theory having been discredited by all major investigations, the video's sophisticated production techniques served as effective exposure, and it sold over 150,000 copies. The Falwell connection by Murray Waas Salon.com

Funding for the film was provided by "Citizens for Honest Government," to which Jerry Falwell paid $200,000 in 1994 and 1995. In 1995 Citizens for Honest Government interviewed two Arkansas state troopers regarding the conspiracy about Vincent Foster. These two troopers Roger Perry and Larry Patterson also gave information regarding the allegations in the Paula Jones (See: Troopergate) claims. In March 2005, trooper Patterson was convicted of USC Title 18, Section 1001 about an unrelated incident.

Falwell's infomercial for the 80-minute tape included footage of Falwell interviewing a silhouetted journalist who claimed to be afraid for his life. The journalist accused Clinton of orchestrating the deaths of several reporters and personal confidants who had gotten too close to his illegalities. It was subsequently revealed, however, that the silhouetted journalist was, in fact, Patrick Matrisciana, the producer of the video and president of Citizens for Honest Government. "Obviously, I'm not an investigative reporter," Matrisciana admitted investigative journalist Murray Waas Later, Falwell seemed to back away from personally trusting the video. In an interview for the 2005 documentary The Hunting of the President, Falwell admitted, "to this day I do not know the accuracy of the claims made in The Clinton Chronicles." The Hunting of the President (DVD) 2005

Homosexuality In 1977 he supported Anita Bryant's "Save Our Children" campaign based on "Christian beliefs regarding the sinfulness of homosexuality and the perceived threat of homosexual recruitment of children and child molestation" in Dade County, Fla., in order to repeal an ordinance that prohibited discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. In urging the repeal of the ordinance, Falwell told one crowd, "Gay folks would just as soon kill you as look at you."

Falwell has been called an agent of intolerance and the founder of the anti-gay industry who regularly demonized and dehumanized gays and fought against gay rights. In the early 1980s when the AIDS pandemic was still in its early years and could have been addressed more proactively as a national health crisis he swayed public opinion against people with AIDS (PWAs) saying “AIDS is not just God's punishment for homosexuals, it is God's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals.”

On Falwell's "Old Time Gospel Hour" broadcast (March 11, 1984), when the mostly gay Metropolitan Community Church was almost accepted into the World Council of Churches, Falwell called them "brute beasts" and stated, "this vile and satanic system will one day be utterly annihilated and there'll be a celebration in heaven."

Falwell's ghostwriter, Mel White, said Falwell remarked about gay protesters, "Thank God for these gay demonstrators. If I didn't have them, I'd have to invent them. They give me all the publicity I need."Steve Inskeep. Religion, Politics a Potent Mix for Jerry Falwell NPR June 30, 2006

Teletubbies In February 1999 an unattributed National Liberty Journal article claimed that Tinky Winky, a Teletubbies, was intended as a gay role model. (NLJ was not the first source to make this association; a 1998 Salon.com article had previously noted Tinky Winky's status as a gay icon. ] - the gay pride color; and his antenna is shaped like a triangle - the gay-pride symbol." Apart from those characteristics Tinky Winky also carries a magic bag which the NLJ article said was a purse. Falwell added "role modelling the gay lifestyle is damaging to the moral lives of children." In response, Steve Rice, spokesperson for Itsy Bitsy Entertainment, which licenses the Teletubbies in the US, said, "I really find it absurd and kind of offensive."

September 11th attacks After the September 11, 2001 attacks, Falwell said on the 700 Club, "I really believe that the Paganisms, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way, all of them who have tried to secularize America. I point the finger in their face and say 'you helped this happen.'" Fellow evangelist Pat Robertson concurred with his sentiment. After heavy criticism, Falwell apologized,http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/09/14/Falwell.apology/, though he later said that he stood by his statement, stating "If we decide to change all the rules on which this Judeo-Christian nation was built, we cannot expect the Lord to put his shield of protection around us as he has in the past."http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=1&aid=69715

Labor unions Falwell has also said, "Labor unions should study and read the Bible instead of asking for more money. When people get right with God, they are better workers."http://www.wisaflcio.org/political_action/rightwing.htm

Legal issues SEC and bonds In 1972 , the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) launched an investigation of bonds issued by Falwell's organizations. The SEC charged Falwell's church with "fraud and deceit" in the issuance of $6.5 million in unsecured church bonds.http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5522064 The church won a 1973 federal court case prosecuted at the behest of the SEC, in which the Court exonerated the church and ruled that there had been no intentional wrong-doing.

According to Falwell, the survival of the University could be attributed to the work of Daniel Reber and Jimmy Thomas, as leaders of the non-profit Christian Heritage Foundation in Forest, Virginia.

Falwell versus Penthouse Falwell filed a $10 million lawsuit against Penthouse Magazine for publishing an article based upon interviews he gave to Freelancer reporters, after failing to convince a federal court to place an injunction upon the publication of that article. The suit was dismissed in Federal district court on the grounds that the article was not defame or an invasion of Falwell's privacy; Falwell ultimately dropped the suit."Falwell Says He Will Press $10 Million Penthouse Suit." The New York Times, 5 February 1981."Penthouse Wins in Court Against Falwell Suit." The New York Times, 7 August 1981."Falwell Won't Pursue Suit." The New York Times, 10 September 1981.

Falwell versus Hustler In November 1983, Larry Flynt's Pornography magazine Hustler carried a parody advertisement of a Campari ad, featuring a fake interview with Falwell in which he admits that his "first time" was incest with his mother in an outhouse while drunk. Falwell sued for $45 million in compensation alleging invasion of privacy, libel, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0283658/bio A jury rejected the invasion of privacy and libel claims, holding that the parody could not have reasonably been taken to describe true events, but ruled in favor of Falwell on the emotional distress claim. This was upheld on appeal. Flynt then appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States, winning a unanimous decision on February 24, 1988. The ruling held that public figures cannot circumvent First Amendment protections by attempting to recover damages based on emotional distress suffered from parodies. The decision in favor of Flynt strengthened free speech rights in the United States in relation to parodies of public figures.

After the death of Falwell, Larry Flynt released a comment regarding his friendship over the years with Falwell."My mother always told me that no matter how much you dislike a person, when you meet them face to face you will find characteristics about them that you like. Jerry Falwell was a perfect example of that. I hated everything he stood for, but after meeting him in person, years after the trial, Jerry Falwell and I became good friends. He would visit me in California and we would debate together on college campuses. I always appreciated his sincerity even though I knew what he was selling and he knew what I was selling." - Larry Flynt http://www.accesshollywood.com/news/ah5356.shtml

Sloan versus Falwell and The Old-Time Gospel In 1984, Falwell was ordered to pay gay activist and former Baptist Bible College classmate Jerry Sloan $5,000 after losing a court battle.

In July, 1984 during a TV debate in Sacramento, California, California, Falwell denied calling the mostly gay Metropolitan Community Churches "brute beasts" and "a vile and Satanism system" that will "one day be utterly annihilated and there will be a celebration in heaven." When Sloan insisted he had a tape, Falwell promised $5,000 if he could produce it. Sloan did, Falwell refused to pay, and Sloan successfully sued. The money was donated to build Sacramento's first gay community center, the Lambda Community Center, serving "Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Intersex" communities.

Falwell appealed the decision with his attorney charging that the judge in the case was prejudiced. He lost again and was made to pay an additional $2,875 in sanctions and court fees.

Falwell versus Christopher Lamparello On April 17 2006, the US Supreme Court refused to grant review of a lower court ruling that Christopher Lamparello's usage of the Internet domain Fallwell.com (note: the extra "L") was legal. The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit had held that Lamparello "clearly created his Web site intending only to provide a forum to criticize ideas, not to steal customers". Supreme Court declines Falwell Web appeal Associated Press. April 17, 2006 Lamparello's website describes itself as not being connected to Jerry Falwell and is critical of Falwell's views on Homosexualitys. Previous to this, "Falwell's attorneys have fought over domain names in the past" with a man turning over jerryfalwell.com and jerryfallwell.com "after Falwell threatened to sue for trademark infringement." Lawyers for Public Citizen Litigation Group's Internet Free Speech project represented the domain name owners in both cases.

Apocalyptic beliefs On July 31 2006, Cable News Network's (CNN) Paula Zahn Now program featured a segment on "whether the crisis in the Middle East is actually a prelude to the end of the world," "marking the third time in eight days that CNN ha devoted airtime to those claiming that the ongoing Mideast violence signal the coming of the Apocalypse." CNN still fixated on Apocalypse predictors. Media matters for America. Aug 1, 2006 Falwell was interviewed claiming, "I believe in the premillennial, pre-tribulational coming of Jesus Christ for all of his church, and to summarize that, your first poll, do you believe Jesus coming the second time will be in the future, I would vote yes with the 59 percent and with Billy Graham and most evangelicals."

In 1999, Falwell declared the Antichrist would probably arrive within a decade and "Of course he'll be Jewish." After anti-Semitism charges Falwell apologized and explained that he was simply expressing the theological tenet that the Antichrist and Christ share many attributes.http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6160167

Failing health and death In early 2005, Falwell was hospitalized for two weeks with a viral infection, discharged, and then rehospitalized on May 30 2005, in respiratory arrest.http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8P4UVFO1&show_article=1 Falwell is taken off ventilator, upgraded to stable condition USA Today May 30, 2005 President George W. Bush contacted Falwell to "wish him well." He was subsequently released from the hospital and returned to his duties. Later in 2005, a stent was implanted to treat a 70% blockage in his coronary artery. Rev. Jerry Falwell Dies - breitbart.com

On May 15 2007, CNN and USA Today reported Falwell had been found without pulse and unconscious in his office about 10:45 am after missing a morning appointment and was taken to Lynchburg General Hospital.

"I had breakfast with him, and he was fine at breakfast… He went to his office, I went to mine and they found him unresponsive." said Godwin, the executive vice president of Falwell's Liberty University.

His condition was initially reported as "gravely serious"; CPR was administered unsuccessfully.http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070515/ap_on_re_us/jerry_falwell As of 2:10 pm, during a live press conference, a doctor for the hospital confirmed that Falwell had died of "cardiac arrhythmia, or sudden cardiac death." A statement issued by the hospital reported he was pronounced dead at Lynchburg General Hospital at 12:40 pm, EST.http://www.centrahealth.com/news/pressrelease78.aspx Falwell’s family, including his wife Macel and sons Jerry Falwell, Jr. and Jonathan Falwell, were with him at the hospital.http://www.liberty.edu/administration/index.cfm?PID=14092

Falwell's funeral took place at 1:00 PM EDT on May 22, 2007 at Thomas Road Baptist Church after lying in repose at both the church and Liberty University. Falwell funeral arrangements (Liberty University) Falwell's burial service was private. It took place at a spot on the Liberty University campus near the Carter Glass, near his office. Thousands Line Up To Attend Jerry Falwell's Funeral Buried nearby is the late B. R. Lakin.

After his death, his two sons succeeded him at his two posts; Jerry Falwell, Jr. took over as Chancellor of Liberty University while Jonathan Falwell became the Senior Pastor of the Thomas Road Baptist Church.

The last televised interview with Jerry Falwell was conducted by Christiane Amanpour for the CNN original series CNN Presents: God's Warriors.[http://www.hvc-inc.com/clients/cnn/warriors/for.html#pr CNN Press ReleaseHe had been interviewed on May 8th, one week before his death.

Publications

See also

Footnotes External links



{{Persondata] Christianity evangelism|DATE OF BIRTH= August 11, 1933, [Virginia, United States, [2007, [Virginia, United States--> {{Infobox Celebrity| name = Jerry Falwell || image = Jerry Falwell portrait.jpg || caption = || birth_date = || birth_place = Lynchburg, Virginia,United States,[United States [Christianity evangelism|years active = 1971-2007|| salary = || networth = || website = http://www.falwell.com/ || footnotes = |-->

Jerry Lamon Falwell, Sr. (August 11 1933 – May 15, 2007) was an United States Fundamentalist Christianity pastor and televangelism. He was the founding pastor of the Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, Virginia. He founded Liberty University in 1971 and co-founded the Moral Majority in 1979.

Falwell led services at Thomas Road Baptist Church, a megachurch in Lynchburg, Virginia. He changed affiliations from Baptist Bible Fellowship International to the mainly conservative Southern Baptist Convention, and ended his self-identification with Fundamentalist Christianity in favor of evangelicalism.

Personal life Falwell was born in Lynchburg, Virginia to Helen and Carey Hezekiah Falwell. His father was an entrepreneur and one-time Rum-runner who was not very religious. His grandfather was a staunch atheist. Televangelist, Christian Leader Falwell Dies, by www.NPR.org, retrieved May 15, 2007 Falwell was born with a twin brother, Gene.

Falwell married the former Macel Pate on April 12, 1958, and had two sons (one, Jerry Falwell, Jr., is a lawyer and the other, Jonathan, a pastor) and one daughter (Jeannie, who is a surgery).

Prior to the founding of his church, Falwell attended Lynchburg College in Lynchburg, Virginia, but left during his wiktionary:sophomore year. He then transferred to and graduated from Baptist Bible College (Springfield, Missouri) in Springfield, Missouri in 1956. Jerry Falwell's Official Biography July 1, 2006; Falwell left Lynchburg College, which was Educational accreditation at the time for Baptist Bible College (Springfield, Missouri) in Springfield, Missouri which was then non-accredited. Baptist Bible College became accredited in 2001.http://www.ncahlc.org/index.php?option=com_directory&Action=ShowBasic&instid=2797

Although he sometimes used the title "Doctor," Falwell held no earned doctorate. He held three honorary degrees: an honorary Doctor of Divinity from Tennessee Baptist Seminary Meet Jerry Falwell, an honorary Doctor of Letters from California Graduate School of Theology, and an honorary Doctor of Laws from Central University (Seoul) in Seoul, South Korea.

Associated organizations Thomas Road Baptist Church In 1956, at age 22, Falwell became the founding pastor of the Thomas Road Baptist Church of Lynchburg (TRBC).

Liberty University In 1971, Jerry Falwell founded Liberty University, a Christian liberal arts university in Lynchburg, Virginia.

Moral Majority In 1979, Falwell founded the Moral Majority, one of the largest political lobby groups for evangelical Christians in the United States. The group is credited with delivering two-thirds of the white, evangelical Christian vote to Ronald Reagan during the United States presidential election, 1980.

Social and political views Families Falwell strongly advocated beliefs and practices he felt were taught by the Bible.The Fundamentalist Phenomenon et al, Baker Publishing Group, 1986) He believed in the quintessential patriarchal family in which, ideally, the father is the primary bread-winner and the wife takes care of the home and raises the children until they’re old enough to attend a Christian school. The entire family was expected to play an active role in their local church. Falwell's company "The Moral Majority" was founded on four basic tenets, 1) pro-family, 2) pro-life, 3) pro-defense and 4) pro-Israel.Falwell.com

The church, Falwell asserted, was the cornerstone of a successful family. Not only was it a place for spiritual learning and guidance, but also a gathering place for fellowship and socializing with like-minded individuals. The dialogs started one-on-one after service among parishioners would often build into more focused speeches or organized goals Falwell could then present to a larger audience via his various media outlets.

Civil rights During the appearance on MSNBC, Falwell said he was not troubled by reports that Supreme Court nominee John Roberts had done volunteer legal work for gay rights activists on the case of Romer v. Evans. Falwell told MSNBC's Tucker Carlson that if he were a lawyer, he too would argue for civil rights for gays. "I may not agree with the lifestyle, but that has nothing to do with the civil rights of that... part of our constituency," Falwell said. When Carlson countered that conservatives "are always arguing against 'special rights' for gays," Falwell said that equal access to housing and employment are basic rights, not special rights. "Civil rights for all Americans, black, white, red, yellow, the rich, poor, young, old, gay, straight, et cetera, is not a liberal or conservative value. It's an American value that I would think that we pretty much all agree on."Eartha Jane Melzer, Falwell hints support for some gay rights, The Washington Blade, August 26, 2005.However, this apparent support for the civil rights of gays and lesbians is in sharp contrast to most of the statements Fallwell made throughout his lifetime that were harshly critical of gays and lesbians.

Falwell supported Anita Bryant's 1977 movement to overturn an ordinance in Miami-Dade County, Florida that prohibited discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and a similar movement in California.Peter Applebome, Jerry Falwell, Leading Religious Conservative, Dies at 73, The New York Times, May 15, 2007.

Falwell grew up in a strongly Racial segregation setting and supported racial segregation. In 1965, he gave a sermon at his Thomas Road Baptist Church criticizing Martin Luther King and the Civil rights movement, which he sometimes referred to as the "Civil Wrongs Movement". On his Evangelist program The Old-Time Gospel Hour in the mid 1960s, he regularly featured segregationist politicians like Lester Maddox and George Wallace.http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=522Falwell's views eventually shifted and he opposed segregation in his later years.http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2006/01/09/justice_sunday/index_np.html

He said this about Martin Luther King, Jr.: "I do question the sincerity and non-violent intentions of some civil rights leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., James L. Farmer, Jr., and others, who are known to have left wing associations."

Israel The Anti-Defamation League, and its leader Abraham Foxman, have expressed strong support for Falwell's staunch pro-Israel stand, sometimes referred to as "Christian Zionism," despite repeatedly condemning what they perceive as intolerance towards Muslims in Falwell's public statements.http://www.adl.org/PresRele/DiRaB_41/4168_41.htm

Education Falwell repeatedly denounced certain teachings in public schools and secular education in general, calling them breeding grounds for atheism, secularism, and humanism, which he claimed to be in contradiction with Christian morality. He advocated that the United States change its public education system by implementing a school voucher system which would allow parents to send their children to either public or private schools. Jerry Falwell wrote in America Can Be Saved that "I hope I live to see the day when, as in the early days of our country, we won't have any public schools. The churches will have taken them over again and Christians will be running them."http://atheism.about.com/library/glossary/western/bldef_falwelljerry.htm

Falwell supported President George W. Bush's White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, but had strong reservations concerning where the funding would go and the restrictions placed on churches. "My problem is where it might go under his successors... I would not want to put any of the Jerry Falwell Ministries in a position where we might be subservient to a future Bill Clinton, God forbid... It also concerns me that once the pork barrel is filled, suddenly the Church of Scientology, the Jehovah's Witnesses , the various and many denominations and religious groups — and I don’t say those words in a pejorative way — begin applying for money — and I don’t see how any can be turned down because of their radical and unpopular views. I don’t know where that would take us."http://www.beliefnet.com/story/70/story_7040_1.html

Apartheid In the 1980s Jerry Falwell was critical of sanctions against the apartheid regime of South Africa. He stated that while he was opposed to apartheid, he feared that sanctions would result in a worse situation, with either a more oppressive white minority government or a Soviet-backed revolution. He drew the ire of many when he called Nobel Peace Prize winner and Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu a phony "as far as representing the black people of South Africa."http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,959695,00.html He later apologized for that remark and claimed that he had misspoken. FALWELL DENOUNCES TUTU AS A 'PHONY' He also urged his followers to buy up gold Krugerrands and push U.S. "reinvestment" in South Africa.

Controversies Election fund improprieties In 1987, the Federal Election Commission fined Falwell US $6,000 for illegally transferring US$6.7 million in funds intended for his religious ministry to his political action committees.

The Clinton Chronicles In 1994, Falwell promoted and distributed the straight-to-video documentary The Clinton Chronicles: An Investigation into the Alleged Criminal Activities of Bill Clinton. The video connected Clinton to a theoretical conspiracy involving Vincent Foster, Jim McDougal, Ron Brown (U.S. politician), and an alleged cocaine-smuggling operation. Despite the theory having been discredited by all major investigations, the video's sophisticated production techniques served as effective exposure, and it sold over 150,000 copies. The Falwell connection by Murray Waas Salon.com

Funding for the film was provided by "Citizens for Honest Government," to which Jerry Falwell paid $200,000 in 1994 and 1995. In 1995 Citizens for Honest Government interviewed two Arkansas state troopers regarding the conspiracy about Vincent Foster. These two troopers Roger Perry and Larry Patterson also gave information regarding the allegations in the Paula Jones (See: Troopergate) claims. In March 2005, trooper Patterson was convicted of USC Title 18, Section 1001 about an unrelated incident.

Falwell's infomercial for the 80-minute tape included footage of Falwell interviewing a silhouetted journalist who claimed to be afraid for his life. The journalist accused Clinton of orchestrating the deaths of several reporters and personal confidants who had gotten too close to his illegalities. It was subsequently revealed, however, that the silhouetted journalist was, in fact, Patrick Matrisciana, the producer of the video and president of Citizens for Honest Government. "Obviously, I'm not an investigative reporter," Matrisciana admitted investigative journalist Murray Waas Later, Falwell seemed to back away from personally trusting the video. In an interview for the 2005 documentary The Hunting of the President, Falwell admitted, "to this day I do not know the accuracy of the claims made in The Clinton Chronicles." The Hunting of the President (DVD) 2005

Homosexuality In 1977 he supported Anita Bryant's "Save Our Children" campaign based on "Christian beliefs regarding the sinfulness of homosexuality and the perceived threat of homosexual recruitment of children and child molestation" in Dade County, Fla., in order to repeal an ordinance that prohibited discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. In urging the repeal of the ordinance, Falwell told one crowd, "Gay folks would just as soon kill you as look at you."

Falwell has been called an agent of intolerance and the founder of the anti-gay industry who regularly demonized and dehumanized gays and fought against gay rights. In the early 1980s when the AIDS pandemic was still in its early years and could have been addressed more proactively as a national health crisis he swayed public opinion against people with AIDS (PWAs) saying “AIDS is not just God's punishment for homosexuals, it is God's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals.”

On Falwell's "Old Time Gospel Hour" broadcast (March 11, 1984), when the mostly gay Metropolitan Community Church was almost accepted into the World Council of Churches, Falwell called them "brute beasts" and stated, "this vile and satanic system will one day be utterly annihilated and there'll be a celebration in heaven."

Falwell's ghostwriter, Mel White, said Falwell remarked about gay protesters, "Thank God for these gay demonstrators. If I didn't have them, I'd have to invent them. They give me all the publicity I need."Steve Inskeep. Religion, Politics a Potent Mix for Jerry Falwell NPR June 30, 2006

Teletubbies In February 1999 an unattributed National Liberty Journal article claimed that Tinky Winky, a Teletubbies, was intended as a gay role model. (NLJ was not the first source to make this association; a 1998 Salon.com article had previously noted Tinky Winky's status as a gay icon. ] - the gay pride color; and his antenna is shaped like a triangle - the gay-pride symbol." Apart from those characteristics Tinky Winky also carries a magic bag which the NLJ article said was a purse. Falwell added "role modelling the gay lifestyle is damaging to the moral lives of children." In response, Steve Rice, spokesperson for Itsy Bitsy Entertainment, which licenses the Teletubbies in the US, said, "I really find it absurd and kind of offensive."

September 11th attacks After the September 11, 2001 attacks, Falwell said on the 700 Club, "I really believe that the Paganisms, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way, all of them who have tried to secularize America. I point the finger in their face and say 'you helped this happen.'" Fellow evangelist Pat Robertson concurred with his sentiment. After heavy criticism, Falwell apologized,http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/09/14/Falwell.apology/, though he later said that he stood by his statement, stating "If we decide to change all the rules on which this Judeo-Christian nation was built, we cannot expect the Lord to put his shield of protection around us as he has in the past."http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=1&aid=69715

Labor unions Falwell has also said, "Labor unions should study and read the Bible instead of asking for more money. When people get right with God, they are better workers."http://www.wisaflcio.org/political_action/rightwing.htm

Legal issues SEC and bonds In 1972 , the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) launched an investigation of bonds issued by Falwell's organizations. The SEC charged Falwell's church with "fraud and deceit" in the issuance of $6.5 million in unsecured church bonds.http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5522064 The church won a 1973 federal court case prosecuted at the behest of the SEC, in which the Court exonerated the church and ruled that there had been no intentional wrong-doing.

According to Falwell, the survival of the University could be attributed to the work of Daniel Reber and Jimmy Thomas, as leaders of the non-profit Christian Heritage Foundation in Forest, Virginia.

Falwell versus Penthouse Falwell filed a $10 million lawsuit against Penthouse Magazine for publishing an article based upon interviews he gave to Freelancer reporters, after failing to convince a federal court to place an injunction upon the publication of that article. The suit was dismissed in Federal district court on the grounds that the article was not defame or an invasion of Falwell's privacy; Falwell ultimately dropped the suit."Falwell Says He Will Press $10 Million Penthouse Suit." The New York Times, 5 February 1981."Penthouse Wins in Court Against Falwell Suit." The New York Times, 7 August 1981."Falwell Won't Pursue Suit." The New York Times, 10 September 1981.

Falwell versus Hustler In November 1983, Larry Flynt's Pornography magazine Hustler carried a parody advertisement of a Campari ad, featuring a fake interview with Falwell in which he admits that his "first time" was incest with his mother in an outhouse while drunk. Falwell sued for $45 million in compensation alleging invasion of privacy, libel, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0283658/bio A jury rejected the invasion of privacy and libel claims, holding that the parody could not have reasonably been taken to describe true events, but ruled in favor of Falwell on the emotional distress claim. This was upheld on appeal. Flynt then appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States, winning a unanimous decision on February 24, 1988. The ruling held that public figures cannot circumvent First Amendment protections by attempting to recover damages based on emotional distress suffered from parodies. The decision in favor of Flynt strengthened free speech rights in the United States in relation to parodies of public figures.

After the death of Falwell, Larry Flynt released a comment regarding his friendship over the years with Falwell."My mother always told me that no matter how much you dislike a person, when you meet them face to face you will find characteristics about them that you like. Jerry Falwell was a perfect example of that. I hated everything he stood for, but after meeting him in person, years after the trial, Jerry Falwell and I became good friends. He would visit me in California and we would debate together on college campuses. I always appreciated his sincerity even though I knew what he was selling and he knew what I was selling." - Larry Flynt http://www.accesshollywood.com/news/ah5356.shtml

Sloan versus Falwell and The Old-Time Gospel In 1984, Falwell was ordered to pay gay activist and former Baptist Bible College classmate Jerry Sloan $5,000 after losing a court battle.

In July, 1984 during a TV debate in Sacramento, California, California, Falwell denied calling the mostly gay Metropolitan Community Churches "brute beasts" and "a vile and Satanism system" that will "one day be utterly annihilated and there will be a celebration in heaven." When Sloan insisted he had a tape, Falwell promised $5,000 if he could produce it. Sloan did, Falwell refused to pay, and Sloan successfully sued. The money was donated to build Sacramento's first gay community center, the Lambda Community Center, serving "Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Intersex" communities.

Falwell appealed the decision with his attorney charging that the judge in the case was prejudiced. He lost again and was made to pay an additional $2,875 in sanctions and court fees.

Falwell versus Christopher Lamparello On April 17 2006, the US Supreme Court refused to grant review of a lower court ruling that Christopher Lamparello's usage of the Internet domain Fallwell.com (note: the extra "L") was legal. The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit had held that Lamparello "clearly created his Web site intending only to provide a forum to criticize ideas, not to steal customers". Supreme Court declines Falwell Web appeal Associated Press. April 17, 2006 Lamparello's website describes itself as not being connected to Jerry Falwell and is critical of Falwell's views on Homosexualitys. Previous to this, "Falwell's attorneys have fought over domain names in the past" with a man turning over jerryfalwell.com and jerryfallwell.com "after Falwell threatened to sue for trademark infringement." Lawyers for Public Citizen Litigation Group's Internet Free Speech project represented the domain name owners in both cases.

Apocalyptic beliefs On July 31 2006, Cable News Network's (CNN) Paula Zahn Now program featured a segment on "whether the crisis in the Middle East is actually a prelude to the end of the world," "marking the third time in eight days that CNN ha devoted airtime to those claiming that the ongoing Mideast violence signal the coming of the Apocalypse." CNN still fixated on Apocalypse predictors. Media matters for America. Aug 1, 2006 Falwell was interviewed claiming, "I believe in the premillennial, pre-tribulational coming of Jesus Christ for all of his church, and to summarize that, your first poll, do you believe Jesus coming the second time will be in the future, I would vote yes with the 59 percent and with Billy Graham and most evangelicals."

In 1999, Falwell declared the Antichrist would probably arrive within a decade and "Of course he'll be Jewish." After anti-Semitism charges Falwell apologized and explained that he was simply expressing the theological tenet that the Antichrist and Christ share many attributes.http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6160167

Failing health and death In early 2005, Falwell was hospitalized for two weeks with a viral infection, discharged, and then rehospitalized on May 30 2005, in respiratory arrest.http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8P4UVFO1&show_article=1 Falwell is taken off ventilator, upgraded to stable condition USA Today May 30, 2005 President George W. Bush contacted Falwell to "wish him well." He was subsequently released from the hospital and returned to his duties. Later in 2005, a stent was implanted to treat a 70% blockage in his coronary artery. Rev. Jerry Falwell Dies - breitbart.com

On May 15 2007, CNN and USA Today reported Falwell had been found without pulse and unconscious in his office about 10:45 am after missing a morning appointment and was taken to Lynchburg General Hospital.

"I had breakfast with him, and he was fine at breakfast… He went to his office, I went to mine and they found him unresponsive." said Godwin, the executive vice president of Falwell's Liberty University.

His condition was initially reported as "gravely serious"; CPR was administered unsuccessfully.http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070515/ap_on_re_us/jerry_falwell As of 2:10 pm, during a live press conference, a doctor for the hospital confirmed that Falwell had died of "cardiac arrhythmia, or sudden cardiac death." A statement issued by the hospital reported he was pronounced dead at Lynchburg General Hospital at 12:40 pm, EST.http://www.centrahealth.com/news/pressrelease78.aspx Falwell’s family, including his wife Macel and sons Jerry Falwell, Jr. and Jonathan Falwell, were with him at the hospital.http://www.liberty.edu/administration/index.cfm?PID=14092

Falwell's funeral took place at 1:00 PM EDT on May 22, 2007 at Thomas Road Baptist Church after lying in repose at both the church and Liberty University. Falwell funeral arrangements (Liberty University) Falwell's burial service was private. It took place at a spot on the Liberty University campus near the Carter Glass, near his office. Thousands Line Up To Attend Jerry Falwell's Funeral Buried nearby is the late B. R. Lakin.

After his death, his two sons succeeded him at his two posts; Jerry Falwell, Jr. took over as Chancellor of Liberty University while Jonathan Falwell became the Senior Pastor of the Thomas Road Baptist Church.

The last televised interview with Jerry Falwell was conducted by Christiane Amanpour for the CNN original series CNN Presents: God's Warriors.[http://www.hvc-inc.com/clients/cnn/warriors/for.html#pr CNN Press ReleaseHe had been interviewed on May 8th, one week before his death.

Publications

See also

Footnotes External links



{{Persondata] Christianity evangelism|DATE OF BIRTH= August 11, 1933, [Virginia, United States, [2007, [Virginia, United States-->

Jerry Falwell - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jerry Lamon Falwell, Sr. (August 11, 1933 – May 15, 2007) [1] was an American evangelical Christian pastor and televangelist. He was the founding pastor of the Thomas Road ...

Jerry Falwell Ministries
Various ministries of Falwell, well-known fundamentalist Baptist minister.

BBC NEWS | Americas | US evangelist Jerry Falwell dies
Leading US conservative evangelist Jerry Falwell dies in hospital in Lynchburg, Virginia, aged 73.

BBC NEWS | World | Americas | US evangelist Jerry Falwell dies
Leading US conservative evangelist Jerry Falwell dies in hospital in Lynchburg, Virginia, aged 73.

Jerry Falwell
Jerry Falwell. AKA Jerry Lamon Falwell. Born: 11-Aug-1933 Birthplace: Lynchburg, VA Died: 15-May-2007 Location of death: Lynchburg, VA [1] Cause of death: Heart Failure

Jerry Falwell Ministries
JFM Secure Store . Sermon Series: iTruths $29.90. Sermon Series: Live Different by Pastor Jonathan Special Price $24.90. Liberty Home Bible Institute now on iPod Nano

Jerry Falwell, right-wing US televangelist, dies - Times Online
Read Ruth Gledhill on the death of Jerry Falwell Jerry Falwell, the US televangelist who founded the Moral Majority and spearheade

Positive Atheism's Big List of Jerry Falwell Quotations
Positive Atheism's Big Scary List of Jerry Falwell Quotations • No-Frames Quotes Index • Load This File With Frames Index • This page: Falwell Did Not Say This

Falwell, Jerry
Falwell, Jerry

Prominent US evangelist Jerry Falwell dies - Telegraph
Jerry Falwell, the television evangelist who founded the Moral Majority movement that helped mould America's religious Right into a political power, died today after being found ...

 

Jerry Falwell



 
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